The New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) is preparing a tender to establish a solar power plant in Hurghada with a capacity of 20 MW.
The authority presented the Japan International Cooperation Agency’s (JICA) offer to finance the project to the House of Representatives on Monday.
A source at the Ministry of Electricity said the project will be financed by a soft loan from the JICA worth $91m. The project will utilise solar photovoltaic cells, which convert solar energy into electricity via solar panels.
The source added that the authority will send the loan documentation to the House of Representatives on Monday for approval. The authority will choose a special consultant during the coming period to conduct the project’s feasibility study and the five-year plan for the Ministry of Electricity’s projects.
According to the source, the JICA completed the project’s feasibility study and disbursed a grant worth $1.5m that would set up equipment at the solar plant’s site to measure the solar radiation to ensure the feasibility of the project. The equipment would also calculate the expected production rate.
The cooperation between Egypt and JICA for the project focuses on the technical side, so that Egypt can benefit from Japanese technology in the field of generating electricity, the source explained.
A delegation from the Ministry of Electricity, which included representatives from the Egyptian Electricity Holding Co. and the Ministry of Environmental Affairs, recently visited Tokyo to learn about Japan’s experience in generating electricity.
The Ministry of Electricity seeks to produce 20% of electricity from new and renewable resources by 2020.
